by Maxen Ryder, Contributing Writer
The Nightmare Club provides a pleasantly scary experience for their group by hosting activities and events in order to create a positive, safe community.
Every week, members of the club vote on a horror movie to watch together. The end result is a group experience with the intent of community, fun, and, of course, scares. The Nightmare Club is enforcing the same COVID-19 guidelines the rest of the school follows with masks and social distancing. Additionally, students who plan on going to the weekly events confirm they will be participating in advance to the meeting. This way, the club is still safe in regards to the pandemic.
The club is a fun way to safely spend a night with friends and meet new people in Farmington’s thrilling night life. “Nightmare Club has always focused on being an environment where everyone is welcomed and just getting to know each other through our shared interest in horror and the supernatural,” said club President Abby Young.
While the movies are often scary, the atmosphere in the room is much more lighthearted. “The meetings are often filled with lighthearted jokes and commentary about the movies being watched and really provide students with an almost humorous break from the stresses of college,” said Young.
The Nightmare Club originated from Professor Paul Gies’ English class on H. P. Lovecraft. “It’s a club for nerds,” said Gies, the Nightmare Club’s faculty advisor. “In Lovecraft class, I think I turn non-nerds into nerds every year.”
Gies uses the term in a positive, light mannered way. “A nerd in modern terms is just someone who is not ashamed of how interesting they find some author, some genre, some art form, some series, some game series, some mythos,” said Gies in an email. “Lovecraft, who’s sort of my bailiwick, was sometimes a great writer, unmatched really, but at other times he was mediocre; we forgive him even as we smirk at how horrible the good guys are in “The Hound” or how wimpy Randolph Carter is.”
The Nightmare Club is always looking for new members to make their community even better. “We really just aim to have everyone feel safe and welcomed and encourage everyone, even if you don’t like the horror genre, give us a try because we try really hard to make sure everyone is safe and comfortable,” said Young.
Students interested in joining the Nightmare Club should email umf.nightmare-group@maine.edu before going to a meeting or join their public Facebook group, “UMF Nightmare Club.” They meet on Friday nights in Roberts 023 at 7:30p